Goldman Sachs' market "strat" team within the securities division
sends a monthly poll to clients to gauge their thinking on a
variety of investment issues.

The December "Quickpoll" includes the question: "Where do you see
bitcoin at the end of the year?" — thought to be the first time
the investment bank has used the poll to ask clients about the
cryptocurrency.

BI understands that around 1,200 Goldman clients answered the
question. Opinion on the price trajectory was divided, but the
biggest minority — 30% — answered "Higher [12,000 - 15,000]." 15%
said they believed bitcoin would be lower or much lower by the
end of the year, while 28% had no view.

The rise in price has coincided with rising interest from
institutional investors and the companies that serve them.
Exchange operators CBOE and CME Group are both set to launch
bitcoin futures contracts later this month and Nasdaq is rumoured
to be planning a similar product.